But new side-by-side comparisons from EDGI provide a kind of virtual trip back in time to the web before Trump took office, shedding light on the subtle ways that the administration is making it harder to track down information about climate change and alternative energy sources online.

However, the group also said that climate research and data does not seem to be getting totally scrapped from online government archives, and federally funded reporting on climate change continues. In November, the administration signed off on a report from federal scientists saying that "there is no convincing alternative explanation" for the "continuing, rapid, human-caused warming of the global atmosphere and ocean."

Some of the changes on the web mirror federal policy shifts since Trump took office. For example, The Bureau of Land Management says 'clean and renewable energy' isn't a priority anymore.

Environmental Data & Governance Initiative (EDGI)

The BLM website used to say that the agency was focused on "energy for today and tomorrow" and "leading the way in allowing for orderly, environmentally responsible development" of sun, wind, and geothermal energy sources.

Today, the same page says the US favors an "all of the above" energy approach: "The BLM supports the America First Energy Plan, which includes oil and gas, coal, strategic minerals, and renewable energy resources such as wind, geothermal and solar," the website reads.

The top priority listed on the BLM website now is "making America safe through energy independence."

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Some content has been completely scrapped from official sites. This old part of the Environmental Protection Agency's website no longer exists:

Environmental Data & Governance Initiative (EDGI)

The deleted content isn't just educational.

Vital information that state officials and experts could use to respond to flooding, hurricanes, and other natural disasters is no longer easily accessible on the web, EDGI says.

For example, plans the EPA drew up for "climate change adaptation" — including advice about how to prepare for flooding and get protection from toxic chemical exposure —are much harder to find now.

Most of these things are still available on archived federal pages. (You can access the old version of the page shown above here.) But not everything is still in those records.

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Some educational materials have been taken down completely, like this old EPA page for kids:

Environmental Data & Governance Initiative (EDGI)

"Of all agencies, the EPA has removed the most climate web content," the EDGI report says.

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The State Department removed its links to climate action reports.

Environmental Data & Governance Initiative (EDGI)

The 2014 and 2016 climate action reports detailed how the government was working to cut greenhouse gas levels in the US to hit its emissions reduction targets. The goal was to decrease emissions to 17% below 2005 levels in 2020 and 26-28% by 2025. The reports also listed ways the US was investing in clean energy projects and research around the country and world.

"With the adoption of the Paris Agreement in December 2015, the world took a decisive step toward avoiding the most dangerous impacts of climate change," the page used to read.

Many of the pages have removed references to climate change and greenhouse gases.

But the Pentagon maintains that climate change impacts, including refugees from drought-stricken areas of the world and rising sea levels, are a significant threat to national security, as The New York Times reported.

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The fact that coal emissions "adversely affect the environment and human health" is gone from the US Energy Information Administration's 'Energy Kids' website.

But the US Energy Information Administration's most recent short-term energy outlook predicts that coal production and burning will continue to drop in 2018. As the Washington Post reported, natural gas is overtaking coal as the fossil fuel of choice for electricity generation — the report forecasts that by 2019, coal will provide 28% of US electricity, whereas natural gas will make up 34%.

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The 'Energy Kids' website lists emissions from coal combustion, but not their effects.

Environmental Data & Governance Initiative (EDGI)

Many academics have been quick to lambaste these website changes.

"Public officials charged with representing the public's interests depend on the federal government to assemble and disseminate top-quality peer-reviewed scientific and technical information," Harvard Law School's Environmental Program Executive Director Joseph Goffman said in a statement.

Paul Edwards from Stanford's Center for International Security and Cooperation went a step further, saying the move demonstrates "American disregard for the most urgent environmental policy problem in history."